Liquid crystal display

ABSTRACT

A liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a substrate, a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix on the substrate where each pixel includes a switching element, a plurality of gate lines that are connected to the switching elements and extend in a row direction, and a gate driver that is connected to the gate lines and is formed on the substrate as an integrated circuit. In the liquid crystal display, the gate driver includes a first region and a second region that is not aligned with the first region.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/157,338, filed on Jan. 16, 2014, which is acontinuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/717,445,filed on Dec. 17, 2012, which is a divisional application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/654,220, filed on Jan. 16, 2007, which claimspriority to and the benefit of Patent Application Nos. 10-2006-0005260and 10-2006-0016105 that were respectively filed in the KoreanIntellectual Property Office, Republic of Korea, on Jan. 18, 2006, andFeb. 20, 2006, the entire contents of which are incorporated byreference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(a) Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to display devices, and more particularlyto a liquid crystal display.

(b) Description of the Related Art

A liquid crystal display is one type of flat panel display that has comeinto widespread use in recent years. Liquid crystal displays typicallyinclude two display panels on which electric field generatingelectrodes, such as pixel electrodes and a common electrode, are formed,with a liquid crystal layer interposed therebetween. In the liquidcrystal display, when a voltage is applied to the electric fieldgenerating electrodes, an electric field is generated in the liquidcrystal layer. The orientation of liquid crystal molecules within theliquid crystal layer is determined and the polarization of incidentlight is controlled by the electric field, thereby displaying a desiredimage.

Liquid crystal displays typically include switching elements connectedto the pixel electrodes and a plurality of signal lines, such as gatelines and data lines, for controlling the switching elements to apply avoltage to the pixel electrodes. The gate lines transmit gate signalsgenerated by a gate driving circuit, and the data lines transmit a datavoltage generated by a data driving circuit. In addition, the switchingelements transmit the data voltage to the pixel electrodes on the basisof the gate signals. The gate driver and the data driver may be mountedto the display panel in the form of a chip. However, in recent years,the gate driver has been integrated into the display panel in order toreduce the overall size of a display device and to improve theproductivity thereof.

The above information disclosed in this Background section is only forenhancement of understanding of the background of the invention andtherefore it may contain information that does not form the prior artthat is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill inthe art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention address the need for a liquidcrystal display capable of effectively protecting an integrated displaypanel gate driver from the external environment. According to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention, a liquid crystal displayincludes a substrate, a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix on thesubstrate where each pixel includes a switching element, a plurality ofgate lines that are connected to the switching elements and extend in arow direction, and a gate driver that is connected to the gate lines andis formed on the substrate as an integrated circuit. In the liquidcrystal display, the gate driver includes a first region and a secondregion that is not aligned with the first region.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the second region may include a thirdregion and a fourth region arranged at both sides of the first region. Afirst distance between the first region and the pixels may be greaterthan a second distance between the second region and the pixels. Thegate driver may include a first gate driver that is connected toodd-numbered gate lines among the gate lines and a second gate driverthat is connected to even-numbered gate lines among the gate lines. Thefirst gate driver and the second gate driver may be disposed opposite toeach other with the pixels interposed therebetween.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the gate driver may include aplurality of circuit portions connected to the gate lines and aplurality of wiring portions that are connected to the circuit portionswhere each of the wiring portions has a plurality of wiring lines fortransmitting signals. At least two of the plurality of circuit portionsmay be arranged in a line, and at least another one of the plurality ofcircuit portions may not be aligned with the at least two of theplurality of circuit portions arranged in a line. The wiring lines maybe bent in the first and second regions. The embodiment may furtherinclude a sealant that is formed so as to surround the pixels. Thesealant may cover the gate driver. The sealant may cover all the wiringlines of the gate driver. A distance between the wiring portion of thefirst region and the wiring portion of the second region may be smallerthan 300 μm (micrometers).

According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, aliquid crystal display includes a substrate, a plurality of pixelsarranged in a matrix on the substrate where each pixel includes aswitching element, a plurality of gate lines that are connected to theswitching elements and extend in a row direction, a gate driver that isconnected to the gate lines and is formed on the substrate as anintegrated circuit, and a sealant that covers the gate driver. In theliquid crystal display, the gate driver includes a first region and asecond region that is not aligned with the first region.

According to still another exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention, a liquid crystal display includes a substrate, a display areain which a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix on the substratewhere each pixel includes a switching element, a plurality of gate linesthat are connected to the switching elements and extend in a rowdirection, a sealant that is formed so as to surround the plurality ofpixels and includes at least one edge portion, and a gate driver that isformed on the substrate as an integrated circuit and is covered with thesealant. In the liquid crystal display, the gate driver is formed inportions other than the edge portion of the sealant.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the gate driver may include aplurality of main gate driving circuits that transmit gate signals tothe gate lines, and a plurality of sub gate driving circuits that assistthe operation of the main gate driving circuits. The main gate drivingcircuits may be positioned at a side of the display area, and the subgate driving circuits may be positioned at one of an upper or lower sideof the display area. The main gate driving circuits and the sub gatedriving circuits may include circuit portions connected to the gatelines and wiring portions connected to the circuit portionsrespectively, where the wiring portion of the main gate driving circuitsmay be connected to the wiring portion of the sub gate driving circuits.The main gate driving circuits may include a first portion connected toan odd-numbered gate line among the gate lines and a second portionconnected to an even-numbered gate line among the gate lines. The firstportion and the second portion may be disposed opposite to each otherwith the display area interposed therebetween.

The scope of the invention is defined by the claims, which areincorporated into this section by reference. A more completeunderstanding of embodiments of the invention will be afforded to thoseskilled in the art, as well as a realization of additional advantagesthereof, by a consideration of the following detailed description.Reference will be made to the appended sheets of drawings that willfirst be described briefly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a liquid crystal displayaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an equivalent circuit diagram illustrating one pixel of aliquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a liquid crystal displayaccording to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating a liquid crystal panel assemblyaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the liquid crystal panel assemblyshown in FIG. 4 taken along the line V-V.

FIG. 6 is a plan view illustrating in detail a portion of the liquidcrystal panel assembly shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is a plan view illustrating a liquid crystal panel assemblyaccording to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating in detail the liquid crystal panelassembly shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating a gate driver according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a circuit diagram illustrating a j-th stage of a shiftregister for a gate driver shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 11 is a layout view schematically illustrating a gate driver shownin FIG. 4.

FIG. 12 is a layout view schematically illustrating a gate driver shownin FIG. 7.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described more fullyhereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in whichpreferred embodiments of the invention are shown. As those skilled inthe art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified invarious ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of thepresent invention. In the drawings, the thickness of layers, films,panels, regions, etc., may be exaggerated for clarity. Like referencenumerals designate like elements throughout the specification. It willbe understood that when an element such as a layer, film, region, orsubstrate is referred to as being “on” another element, it can bedirectly on the other element or intervening elements may also bepresent. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directlyon” another element, there are no intervening elements present.

First, a liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1and 2. The term exemplary herein describes an example embodiment and notnecessarily an ideal embodiment. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustratinga liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention, and FIG. 2 is an equivalent circuit diagramillustrating a pixel of the liquid crystal display according to theexemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 1 and2, the liquid crystal display according to the exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention includes a liquid crystal panel assembly 300, apair of a gate driver 400 and a data driver 500 connected to the liquidcrystal panel assembly 300, a gray voltage generator 800 connected tothe data driver 500, and a signal controller 600 for controlling theabove elements.

In the equivalent circuit diagram, the liquid crystal panel assembly 300includes a plurality of signal lines G₁ to G_(n) and D₁ to D_(m) and aplurality of pixels PX that are connected to the plurality of signallines and are substantially arranged in a matrix configuration. As shownin FIG. 2, the liquid crystal panel assembly 300 includes lower andupper panels 100 and 200 facing each other and a liquid crystal layer 3interposed therebetween. The signal lines include a plurality of gatelines G₁ to G_(n) for transmitting gate signals (also referred to as“scanning signals”) and a plurality of data lines D₁ to D_(m) fortransmitting data signals. The gate lines G₁ to G_(n) extendsubstantially in a row direction and are substantially parallel to eachother, while the data lines D₁ to D_(m) extend substantially in a columndirection and also are substantially parallel to each other. Each pixelPX includes a switching element Q connected to one of the signal lines,a liquid crystal capacitor Clc connected to the switching element Q, anda storage capacitor Cst. The storage capacitor Cst may be omitted. Theswitching element Q is a three-terminal element, such as a thin filmtransistor, and is disposed on the lower panel 100. A control terminalof the switching element Q is connected to a gate line G_(i), an inputterminal thereof is connected to a data line D_(j), and an outputterminal thereof is connected to the liquid crystal capacitor Clc andthe storage capacitor Cst.

The liquid crystal capacitor Clc has as two terminals a pixel electrode191 of the lower panel 100 and a common electrode 270 of the upper panel200, and also has the liquid crystal layer 3 between the two electrodes191 and 270 as a dielectric material. The pixel electrode 191 isconnected to the switching element Q, and the common electrode 270covers an entire surface of the upper panel 200 and is supplied with acommon voltage Vcom. Unlike the structure shown in FIG. 2, the commonelectrode 270 may be provided on the lower panel 100. In this case, atleast one of the two electrodes 191 and 270 may have a shape of bar orstripe. The storage capacitor Cst, serving as an auxiliary capacitor ofthe liquid crystal capacitor Clc, is composed of a signal line (notshown) provided on the lower panel 100, the pixel electrode 191, and aninsulator interposed therebetween. A predetermined voltage, such as acommon voltage Vcom, is applied to the signal line. Alternatively, thestorage capacitor Cst may be a laminated structure of the pixelelectrode 191, the insulator, and a previous gate line formed on theinsulator.

Meanwhile, in order to perform color display, each pixel PX specificallydisplays one primary color (spatial division), or the pixels PXalternately display the primary colors over time (temporal division),which causes the primary colors to be spatially or temporallysynthesized, thereby displaying a desired color. An example of a set ofthe primary colors may be composed of, for example, red, green, andblue. As an example of the spatial division, FIG. 2 shows that eachpixel PX has a color filter 230 for displaying one of the primary colorsin a region of the upper panel 200 corresponding to the pixel electrode191. Alternatively, the structure shown in FIG. 2, the color filter 230may be provided on or under the pixel electrode 191 of the lower panel100. One or more polarizers (not shown) for polarizing light areattached to the outer surface of the liquid crystal panel assembly 300.

Referring to FIG. 1 again, the gray voltage generator 800 generates afull number of gray voltages or a limited number of gray voltages(referred to as “reference gray voltages” hereinafter) related to thetransmittance of the pixels PX. Some of the (reference) gray voltageshave a positive polarity relative to the common voltage Vcom, while theother of the (reference) gray voltages have a negative polarity relativeto the common voltage Vcom. The gate driver 400 is connected to the gatelines G₁ to G_(n) of the liquid crystal panel assembly 300, andsynthesizes a gate-on voltage Von and a gate-off voltage Voff togenerate the gate signals for application to the gate lines G₁ to G_(n).The gate driver 400 substantially serves as a shift register, andincludes a plurality of stages arranged in a line. The gate driver 400is formed and integrated into the liquid crystal panel assembly 300together with the signal lines G₁ to G_(n) and D₁ to D_(m) and the thinfilm transistor switching elements Q by the same process. The datadriver 500 is connected to the data lines D₁ to D_(m) of the liquidcrystal panel assembly 300, selects the gray voltage generated by thegray voltage generator 800, and supplies the selected gray voltage tothe data lines D₁ to D_(m) as a data signal. However, when the grayvoltage generator 800 generates only a reduced number of the referencegray voltages instead of all the gray voltages, the data driver 500 maydivide the reference gray voltages to generate the data voltages amongthe gray voltages. The signal controller 600 controls, for example, thegate driver 400 and the data driver 500.

Each of the drivers 500, 600, and 800 may be directly mounted on theliquid crystal panel assembly 300 in the form of at least one IC chip,may be mounted on a flexible printed circuit film (not shown) and thenmounted on the liquid crystal panel assembly 300 in the form of a tapecarrier package (TCP), or may be mounted on a separate printed circuitboard (not shown). Alternatively, the drivers 500, 600, and 800 may beintegrated with the liquid crystal panel assembly 300 together with, forexample, the signal lines G₁ to G_(n) and D₁ to D_(m) and the thin filmtransistor switching elements Q. The drivers 500, 600, and 800 may beintegrated into a single chip. In this case, at least one of the driversor at least one circuit forming the drivers may be arranged outside thesingle chip.

Next, a liquid crystal display according to another exemplary embodimentof the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 3.FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a liquid crystal displayaccording to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.Referring to FIG. 3, the liquid crystal display according to the presentexemplary embodiment includes a liquid crystal panel assembly 300, agate driver 400 and a data driver 500 connected to the liquid crystalpanel assembly 300, a gray voltage generator 800 connected to the datadriver 500, and a signal controller 600 for controlling thesecomponents.

The liquid crystal display shown in FIG. 3 differs from the liquidcrystal display shown in FIG. 1 in that a pair of gate lines G₁ toG_(2n) is arranged for each row of pixels. The gate driver 400 isdivided into first and second gate drivers 400L and 400R disposed on theleft and right sides of the liquid crystal panel 300. The first gatedriver 400L is connected to odd-numbered gate lines G₁, G₃, . . . ,G_(2n−1), and the second gate driver 400R is connected to even-numberedgate lines G₂, G₄, . . . , G_(2n). However, this is not consideredlimiting. For example, odd-numbered gate lines G₁, G₃, . . . , G_(2n−1)may be connected to the second gate driver 400R, and even-numbered gatelines G₂, G₄, . . . , G_(2n) may be connected to the first gate driver400L. The first and second gate drivers 400L and 400R are connected tothe gate lines G₁ to G_(2n) of the liquid crystal panel assembly 300,and supply gate signals, each synthesizes a gate-on voltage Von and agate-off voltage Voff to generate the gate signals for application tothe gate lines G₁-G_(2n). In this way, it is possible to supply the gatesignals to the gate lines G₁ to G_(2n) from both sides of the liquidcrystal panel assembly 300, which prevents the gate signals from beingdelayed at one side of each of the gate lines G₁ to G_(2n).

Therefore, it is possible to effectively transmit the gate signalsthrough all the gate lines G₁ to G_(2n).

Next, the operation of the liquid crystal display will be described indetail below. The signal controller 600 is supplied with input imagesignals R, G, and B and input control signals for displaying the inputimage signals from an external graphic controller (not shown). The inputimage signals R, G and B contain luminance information of pixels PXwhere the luminance has a predetermined number of grays or gray levels,for example, 1024(=2¹⁰), 256(=2⁸), or 64(=2⁶) grays. The input controlsignals include a vertical synchronization signal Vsync, a horizontalsynchronization signal Hsync, a main clock signal MCLK, and a dataenable signal DE.

The signal controller 600 processes the input image signals R, G, and Bso as to be suitable for the operational conditions of the liquidcrystal panel assembly 300 on the basis of the input control signal, andgenerates, for example, a gate control signal CONT1 and a data controlsignal CONT2. Then, the signal controller 600 transmits the gate controlsignal CONT1 to the gate driver 400 and transmits the data controlsignal CONT2 and the processed image signal DAT to the data driver 500.The gate control signal CONT1 includes a scanning start signal STV forinstructing to start scanning and at least one clock signal forcontrolling the output cycle of the gate-on voltage Von. The gatecontrol signal CONT1 may further include an output enable signal OE fordefining the duration of the gate-on voltage Von. The data controlsignal CONT2 includes a horizontal synchronization start signal STH forinforming of start of data transmission for a row (group) of pixels PXstarts, a load signal LOAD for instructing to apply the data voltages tothe data lines D₁ to D_(m), and a data clock signal HCLK. The datacontrol signal CONT2 may further include an inversion signal RVS forreversing the polarity of the voltage of a data signal with respect tothe common voltage Vcom (hereinafter, “the polarity of the voltage of adata signal with the common voltage” is simply referred to as “thepolarity of a data signal”).

The data driver 500 receives the digital image signal DAT for a row(group) of pixels PX in response to the data control signal CONT2transmitted from the signal controller 600, selects a gray voltagecorresponding to each digital image signal DAT, converts the digitalimage signal DAT into an analog data signal, and supplies the analogdata signal to the corresponding data lines D₁ to D_(m). The gate driver400 applies the gate-on voltage Von to the gate lines G₁ to G_(2n) inresponse to the gate control signal CONT1 from the signal controller 600to turn on the switching elements Q connected to the gate lines G₁ toG_(2n). Then, the data signals applied to the data lines D₁ to D_(m) aresupplied to the corresponding pixels PX through the switching elements Qthat are in an on state. The difference between the voltage of the datasignal applied to the pixel PX and the common voltage Vcom is a chargingvoltage of the liquid crystal capacitor Clc, that is, a pixel voltage.The alignment directions of liquid crystal molecules depend on the levelof the pixel voltage, which causes the polarization of light passingthrough the liquid crystal layer 3 to vary. The variation inpolarization causes a variation in the transmittance of light by thepolarizer mounted on the liquid crystal panel assembly 300.

These processes are repeatedly performed for every one horizontal period(which is referred to as “1H” and is equal to one period of thehorizontal synchronization signal Hsync and the data enable signal DE).In this way, the gate-on voltage Von is sequentially applied to all thegate lines G₁ to G_(2n), and the data signals are supplied to all thepixels PX, thereby displaying one frame of images. When one frame hasended, the next frame starts. In this case, the state of the inversionsignal RVS applied to the data driver 500 is controlled such that thepolarity of the data signal applied to each pixel PX is opposite to thepolarity of the data signal in the previous frame (“frame inversion”).The polarity of the data signal applied to one data line may be invertedin the same frame according to the characteristic of the inversionsignal RVS (for example, row inversion and dot inversion), and thepolarities of the data signals applied to a row of pixels may bedifferent from each other (for example, column inversion and dotinversion).

Next, a liquid crystal panel assembly according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention and a gate driver formed in theliquid crystal panel assembly will be described in detail with referenceto FIGS. 4 to 9. FIG. 4 is a top plan view illustrating a liquid crystalpanel assembly according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the liquid crystal panelassembly taken along the line V-V of FIG. 4, and FIG. 6 is a top planview illustrating in detail an edge of the liquid crystal panel assemblyshown in FIG. 4.

Referring to FIG. 4 to FIG. 6, a liquid crystal panel assembly accordingto an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a thin filmtransistor array panel 100, a common electrode panel 200(refer toFIG. 1) a liquid crystal layer 3(refer to FIG. 1) interposed between thetwo display panels 100 and 200, and a sealant 310 for sealing the liquidcrystal layer 3. The liquid crystal panel assembly 300 has a displayarea DA and a peripheral area PA disposed at one side of the displayarea DA. The data driver 500 connected to the data lines D₁ to D_(m) ismounted in the peripheral area PA of a substrate 110. For example, thegate lines G₁ to G_(n), the data lines D₁ to D_(m) intersecting the gatelines G₁ to G_(n), thin film transistors (not shown) connected to thegate lines G₁ to G_(n) and the data lines D₁ to D_(m), and pixelelectrodes 191 connected to the thin film transistors are formed in thedisplay area DA of the substrate 110.

The gate drivers 400 are integrated at both sides of the display areaDA. Each of the gate drivers 400 has a plurality of gate drivingcircuits 410. Each of the gate drivers 400 includes a first region 400 ain which the gate driving circuits 410 are arranged in a line and secondregions 400 b that are not aligned with the first region 400 a. Thesecond regions 400 b are arranged at the upper and lower sides of thefirst region 400 a. In the second regions 400 b, at least one of thegate driving circuits 410 is arranged closer to the display area DA thanthe gate driving circuits 410 of the first region 400 a. It ispreferable that a distance D between the uppermost gate driving circuit410 of the second region 400 b and the gate driving circuits 410 of thefirst region 400 a be smaller than 300 μm (micrometers). A sealant 310is formed in the periphery of the display area DA, and edge portions 311of the sealant 310 are rounded or chamfered, in view of a subsequentprocess. The position of the second regions 400 b of the gate driver 400is substantially identical to that of the edge portions 311 of thesealant 310. Therefore, the gate driver 400 is covered with the sealant310. In this way, it is possible to prevent the gate driver 400 frombeing exposed to the air, water and other material generated in aprocess etc and thereby corroded. Particularly, portions 410 a of thegate driver 400 opposite to the display area DA, including the edgeportions 311 of the sealant 310, are covered with the sealant 310. Thecommon electrode panel 200 is bonded to the thin film transistor arraypanel 100 by the sealant 310. A light shielding layer 220 is formed on asubstrate 210 of the common electrode panel 200, and the commonelectrode 270 is formed on the light shielding layer 220. Color filters(not shown) may be formed between the substrate 210 and the commonelectrode 270. Alternatively, the color filters may be formed on thethin film transistor array panel 100.

Next, a liquid crystal panel assembly according to another exemplaryembodiment of the present invention will be described in detail withreference to FIGS. 7 and 8. FIG. 7 is a top plan view illustrating aliquid crystal panel assembly according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention, and FIG. 8 is a top plan view illustrating indetail an edge portion of the liquid crystal panel assembly shown inFIG. 7. Since the structure shown in FIG. 7 is substantially similar tothe cross-sectional structure shown in FIG. 5, components shown in FIG.7 have the same reference numerals as those shown in FIG. 5.

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, a liquid crystal panel assembly according toan exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a thin filmtransistor array panel 100, a common electrode panel 200, a liquidcrystal layer 3 interposed between the two display panes 100 and 200,and a sealant 310 for sealing the liquid crystal layer 3. The liquidcrystal panel assembly 300 includes a display area DA for displayingimages and a peripheral area PA disposed at one side of the display areaDA. A data driver 500 connected to data lines D₁ to D_(m) is provided inthe peripheral area PA of a substrate 110. For example, gate lines G₁ toG_(n), the data lines D₁ to D_(m) intersecting the gate lines G₁ toG_(n), thin film transistors (not shown) connected to the gate lines G₁to G_(n) and the data lines D₁ to D_(m), and pixel electrodes 191connected to the thin film transistors are formed in the display area DAof the substrate 110.

Gate drivers 400L, 400R, and 400D are formed in the peripheral areas PAas integrated circuits. Each of the gate drivers 400L, 400R, and 400Dincludes a plurality of gate driving circuits 410 and 420. Morespecifically, the first and second gate drivers 400L and 400R are formedin the peripheral areas PA disposed at both sides of the display areaDA, and the third gate driver 400D is formed in the peripheral area PAdisposed at the lower side of the display area DA. The third gate driver400D may be formed in a portion of the peripheral area PA at the lowerside of the display area DA. Signal lines for connecting the data driver500 to the display area DA are formed in the peripheral area PA disposedat the upper side of the display area DA. The first and second gatedrivers 400R and 400L are connected to the gate lines G₁ to G_(n) formedin the display area DA to substantially apply gate signals to the gatelines G₁ to G_(n). The third gate driver 400D is a dummy driver forcompensating for the step difference between the display area DA and theperipheral areas PA having the first and second gate drivers 400R and400L formed therein. Therefore, the third gate driver 400D is notconnected to the gate lines G₁ to G_(n) formed in the display area DA.The third gate driver 400D is connected to the first gate driver 400Land the the second gate driver 400R via wirings made of the samematerial as the gate lines or data lines. The signal lines forconnecting the data lines D₁ to D_(m) to the data driver 500 are notformed in the peripheral area PA disposed at the upper side of thedisplay area DA. Therefore, the compensation for the step difference isnot needed in the upper peripheral area PA.

As shown in FIG. 7, the data driver 500 is provided in the peripheralarea PA disposed at the upper side of the display area DA, and the thirdgate driver 400D is provided in the peripheral area PA disposed at thelower side of the display area DA. However, the positional relationshipbetween the data driver 500 and the third gate driver 400D may bechanged. Meanwhile, the first and second gate drivers 400L and 400R areconnected to the third gate driver 400D. The sealant 310 is formed inthe periphery of the display area DA, and edge portions 311 of thesealant 310 are rounded or chamfered, in view of a subsequent process.The gate drivers 400 are not formed at the edge portions 311 of thesealant 310. That is, the first and second gate drivers 400L and 400Rare formed along portions 312 of the sealant 310 parallel to straightportions of the display area DA, and the gate drivers 400 are notprovided in the edge portions 311 that are bent from the portions 312 ofthe sealant 310 parallel to the straight portions of the display areaDA. Therefore, the gate drivers 400 are completely covered with thesealant 310. In this way, it is possible to prevent the gate drivers 400from being exposed to the outside and being corroded. The commonelectrode panel 200 is bonded to the thin film transistor array panel100 by the sealant 310. A light shielding layer 220 is formed on asubstrate 210 of the common electrode panel 200, and a common electrode270 is formed on the light shielding layer 220. Color filters (notshown) may be formed between the substrate 210 and the common electrode270. Alternatively, the color filters may be formed on the thin filmtransistor array panel 100.

Next, a gate driver 400 of a liquid crystal panel assembly according toan exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described indetail with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. FIG. 9 is a block diagramillustrating a gate driver according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention, and FIG. 10 is a circuit diagram illustrating a j-thstage of a shift register for a gate driver according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, firstand second scanning start signals LSTV and RSTV, and first to fourthclock signals LCLK1, RCLK1, LCLK2, and RCLK2 are input to shiftregisters 400L and 400R, serving as the gate drivers 400, respectively.Each of the shift registers 400L and 400R includes a plurality of stagesST1 to STj+3 connected to the gate lines. The plurality of stages ST1 toSTj+3 are connected to one another in a cascade manner, and are suppliedwith the first and second scanning start signals LSTV and RSTV and thefirst to fourth clock signals LCLK1, RCLK1, LCLK2, and RCLK2.

The first scanning start signal LSTV input to the left shift register400L and the second scanning start signal RSTV input to the right shiftregister 400R are signals having one frame period in which a pulsehaving a width of 1H is included in one frame. In each of the shiftregisters 400L and 400R, different clock signals LCLK1, RCLK1, LCLK2,and RCLK2 are input to two adjacent stages. For example, the first clocksignal LCLK1 is input to the first stage of the left shift register400L, and the third clock signal LCLK2 is input to the second stagethereof. The second clock signal RCLK1 is input to the first stage ofthe right shift register 400R, and the fourth clock signal RCLK2 isinput to the second stage thereof. When each of the clock signals LCLK1,RCLK1, LCLK2, and RCLK2 is at a high level, it may be the gate-onvoltage Von for driving the switching element Q of the pixel.Conversely, when the clock signals are at low levels, they may begate-off voltages Voff.

Each of the stages has a set terminal S, a gate voltage terminal GV, apair of clock terminals CK1 and CK2, a reset terminal R, a frame resetterminal FR, a gate output terminal OUT1, and a carry output terminalOUT2. For example, a carry output Cout(j−2) of a previous stage ST(j−2)is input to the set terminal S of a j-th stage STj, and a gate outputGout(j+2) of the next stage ST(j+2) is input to the reset terminal R ofthe j-th stage STj. In addition, the clock signals LCLK1 and LCLK2 areinput to the clock terminals CK1 and CK2 of the j-th stage STj,respectively, and the gate-off voltage Voff is input to the gate voltageterminal GV thereof. The gate output terminal OUT1 outputs a gate outputGout(j), and the carry output terminal OUT2 outputs a carry outputCout(j). However, instead of the previous carry out, the scanning startsignals LSTV and RSTV are input to the first stages of the shiftregisters 400L and 400R, respectively. In addition, when the clocksignal LCLK1 is input to the clock terminal CK1 of the j-th stage STjand the clock signal LCLK2 is input to the clock terminal CK2 thereof,the clock signal LCLK2 is input to the clock terminals CK1 of the(j−2)-th and (j+2)-th stages ST(j−2) and ST(j+2) adjacent to the j-thstage STj, and the clock signal LCLK1 is input to the clock terminalsCK2 thereof.

Referring to FIG. 10, each stage, for example, the j-th stage, of thegate driver 400 according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention includes an input section 420, a pull-up driver 430, apull-down driver 440, and an output section 450. These components eachinclude at least one NMOS transistor T1 to T14, and the pull-up driver430 and the output section 450 further include capacitors C1 to C3.However, PMOS transistors may be used instead of the NMOS transistors.The capacitors C1 to C3 may be substantially parasitic capacitancesbetween a gate and a drain/source formed in the manufacturing process.The input section 420 includes three transistors T11, T10, and T5connected in series between the set terminal S and the gate voltageterminal GV. The gate of each of the transistors T11 and T5 is connectedto the clock terminal CK2, and the gate of the transistor T10 isconnected to the clock terminal CK1. A connection point between thetransistor T11 and the transistor T10 is connected to a connection pointJ1, and a connection point between the transistor T10 and the transistorT5 is connected to a connection point J2.

The pull-up driver 430 includes the transistor T4 connected between theset terminal S and the connection point J1, the transistor T12 connectedbetween the clock terminal CK1 and a connection point J3, and thetransistor T7 connected between the clock terminal CK1 and a connectionpoint J4. The gate and the drain of the transistor T4 are connected tothe set terminal S, and the source thereof is connected to theconnection point J1. The gate and the drain of the transistor T12 areconnected to the clock terminal CK1, and the source thereof is connectedto the connection point J3. The gate of the transistor T7 is connectedto the connection point J3 and is also connected to the clock terminalCK1 through the capacitor C1. In addition, the drain of the transistorT7 is connected to the clock terminal CK1, and the source thereof isconnected to the connection point J4. A capacitor C2 is connectedbetween the connection points J3 and J4.

The pull-down driver 440 includes a plurality of transistors T6, T9,T13, T8, T3, and T2 that receive the gate-off voltage Voff and output itto the connection points J1, J2, J3, and J4 through their drains. Thegate of the transistor T6 is connected to the frame reset terminal FR,and the drain thereof is connected to the connection point J1. The gateof the transistor T9 is connected to the reset terminal R, and the drainthereof is connected to the connection point J1. The gates of thetransistors T13 and T8 are connected to the connection point J2, and thedrains thereof are connected to the connection points J3 and J4,respectively. The gate of the transistor T3 is connected to theconnection point J4, and the gate of the transistor T2 is connected tothe reset terminal R. The drains of the two transistors T3 and T2 areconnected to the connection point J2.

The output section 450 includes a pair of transistors T1 and T14 eachhaving a drain and a source respectively connected between the clockterminal CK1 and the output terminals OUT1 and OUT2 and a gate connectedto the connection point J1, and the capacitor C3 connected between thegate and the drain of the transistor T1, that is, between the connectionpoints J1 and J2. The source of the transistor T1 is connected to theconnection point J2. Next, the operation of this stage will be describedas follows. For better comprehension and ease of description, a voltagecorresponding to the high level of the clock signal LCLK1, LCKL2, RCLK1,or RCLK2 is referred to as a high voltage, and a voltage correspondingto the low level of the clock signal LCLK1, LCLK2, RCLK1, or RCLK2 isreferred to as a low voltage. The level of the low voltage is equal tothat of the gate-off voltage Voff.

First, when the clock signal LCLK2 and the previous carry outputCout(j−2) change to high levels, or go high, the transistors T11, T5,and T4 are turned on. Then, the two transistors T11 and T4 transmit thehigh voltage to the connection point J1, and the transistor T5 transmitsthe low voltage to the connection point J2. The transistors T1 and T14are turned on to cause the clock signal CLK1 to be output from theoutput terminals OUT1 and OUT2. At that time, since the voltage levelsof the connection point J2 and the clock signal LCLK1 are low, theoutput voltages Gout(j) and Cout(j) become low. Simultaneously, thecapacitor C3 is charged with a voltage corresponding to the differencebetween the high voltage and the low voltage. In this case, since theclock signal LCLK1 and the next gate output Gout(j+2) are at low levelsand the connection point J2 is at a low level, the transistors T10, T9,T12, T13, T8, and T2 having gates connected to one another are in an offstate.

When the clock signal LCLK2 changes to a low level, or goes low, thetransistors T11 and T5 are turned off. At that time, when the clocksignal LCLK1 changes to a high level, the output voltage of thetransistor T1 and the voltage of the connection point J2 change to highlevels. At this time, a high voltage is applied to the gate of thetransistor T10, and the potential of the source connected to theconnection point J2 is at a high level. Therefore, the potentialdifference between the gate and the source is zero, and thus thetransistor T10 is kept in an off state. Therefore, the connection pointJ1 is in a floating state, and thus the potential increases by the highvoltage by means of the capacitor C3.

Meanwhile, since the potentials of the clock signal LCLK1 and theconnection point J2 are at high levels, the transistors T12, T13, and T8are turned on. In this state, the transistor T12 and the transistor T13are connected in series to each other between the high voltage and thelow voltage, and thus the connection point J3 has a voltage valuedivided by resistance values when the transistors T12 and T13 are turnedon. However, if the resistance value when the transistor T13 is turnedon is significantly higher than that when the transistor T12 is turnedon, for example, if the resistance value when the transistor T13 isturned on is ten thousand times higher than that when the transistor T12is turned on, the voltage of the connection point J3 is substantiallyequal to the high voltage. Therefore, the transistor T7 is turned on andthen connected in series to the transistor T8, which causes theconnection point J4 to have a voltage value divided by resistance valueswhen the two transistors T7 and T8 are turned on. At this time, when theresistance values when the transistors T7 and T8 are turned on are setto be substantially equal to each other, the connection point J4 has anintermediate voltage value between the high voltage and the low voltage,which causes the transistor T3 to be kept in an off state. At that time,since the next gate output Gout(j+2) is at a low level, the transistorsT9 and T2 are also kept in an off state. Therefore, the output terminalsOUT1 and OUT2 are connected to only the clock terminal CK1 and aredisconnected from the low voltage terminal, so that a high voltage isoutput from the output terminals OUT1 and OUT2. Meanwhile, the capacitorCl and the capacitor C2 are charged with a voltage corresponding to thepotential difference therebetween, and the voltage of the connectionpoint J3 is lower than that of the connection point J5.

Subsequently, when the next gate output Gout(j+1) and the clock signalCLK2 turn to high levels and the clock signal CLK1 changes to a lowlevel, the transistors T9 and T2 are turned on to apply a low voltage tothe connection points J1 and J2. At that time, the voltage of theconnection point J1 drops to a low level due to the discharge of thecapacitor C3, and the discharge of the capacitor C3 causes apredetermined amount of time to be required, or introduces a delay, forthe voltage to drop to the low level. Therefore, after the next gateoutput Gout(j+1) changes to a high level, the two transistors T1 and T14are kept on for a period of time, so that the output terminals OUT1 andOUT2 are connected to the clock terminal CK1, and the low voltage isoutput from the output terminals OUT1 and OUT2. When the capacitor C3 iscompletely discharged and the potential of the connection point J1reaches a low level, the transistor T14 is turned off causing the outputterminal OUT2 to be effectively disconnected from the clock terminalCK1. Therefore, the carry output Cout(j) becomes a floating state, andthus the low voltage is kept. At the same time, the output terminal OUT1is connected to the low voltage terminal through the transistor T2 evenwhen the transistor T1 is turned off. Therefore, the low voltage iscontinuously output from the output terminal OUT1.

Meanwhile, when the transistors T12 and T13 are turned off, theconnection point J3 becomes a floating state. In addition, the voltageof the connection point J5 is lower than the voltage of the connectionpoint J4, and the voltage of the connection point J3 is kept lower thanthe voltage of the connection point J5 by the capacitor C1, which causesthe transistor T7 to be turned off. At the same time, the transistor T8is turned off, and the voltage of the connection point J4 is lowered, orbrought low, which causes the transistor T3 to be kept in an off state.Further, since the low level clock signal CLK1 is input to the gate ofthe transistor T10 and the voltage of the connection point J2 is low,the transistor T10 is kept in an off state. Then, when the clock signalCLK1 changes to a high level, the transistors T12 and T7 are turned on,and the voltage of the connection point J4 increases, which causes thetransistor T3 to be turned on. Then, the low voltage is transmitted tothe connection point J2, and thus the low voltage is continuously outputfrom the output terminal OUT1. That is, even when the next gate outputGout(j+1) is at a low level, the voltage of the connection point J2 canbe at a low level.

Meanwhile, since the high level clock signal CLK1 is input to the gateof the transistor T10 and the voltage of the connection point J2 is low,the transistor T10 is turned on, and thus the low voltage of theconnection point J2 is applied to the connection point J1. Meanwhile,since the drains of the two transistors T1 and T14 are connected to theclock terminal CK1, the clock signal CLK1 is continuously supplied tothe drains. Particularly, the size of the transistor T1 is larger thanthose of the other transistors, which introduces a parasitic capacitancebetween the gate and the drain of the transistor T1. As a result, avariation in the voltage of the drain may affect the gate voltage.Therefore, when the clock signal CLK1 changes to a high level, the gatevoltage increases due to the parasitic capacitance between the gate andthe drain, which may cause the transistor T1 to be turned on. Thus, thegate voltage of the transistor T1 is kept at a low level by applying thelow voltage of the connection point J2 to the connection point J1, whichprevents the transistor T1 from being turned on. Thereafter, the voltageof the connection point J1 is kept at a low level until the next carryoutput Cout(j−2) changes to a high level. The voltage of the connectionpoint J2 becomes low through the transistor T3 when the clock signalCLK1 is at a high level and the clock signal CLK2 is at a low level. Thevoltage of the connection point J2 is kept at a low level through thetransistor T5 when the clock signal CLK1 is at a low level and the clocksignal CLK2 is at a high level. Meanwhile, the transistor T6 receives aninitializing signal INT generated in the last dummy stage (not shown)and transmits the gate-off voltage Voff to the connection point J1,thereby setting the voltage of the connection point J1 to a low voltageagain. In this way, the stage 410 generates the carry signal Cout(j) andthe gate signal Gout(j), on the basis of the previous carry signalCout(j−2) and the next gate signal Gout(j+2), in synchronization withthe clock signals LCLK1 and LCLK2.

Next, the arrangement of the gate driver 400 on the thin film transistorarray panel 100 shown in FIGS. 4 and 7 will be described in detail withreference to FIGS. 11 and 12, respectively. FIG. 11 is a layout viewschematically illustrating the gate driver 400 shown in FIG. 4, and FIG.12 is a layout view schematically illustrating the gate driver 400 shownin FIG. 7. Referring to FIG. 11, the gate driver 400 according to anexemplary embodiment of the invention includes circuit portions CScomposed of the stages ST1 to STj+3 and wiring portions LS fortransmitting various signals Voff, LCKV1, RCKV1, LCKV2, RCKV2, and INTinput to the stages ST1 to STj+3. However, only the gate driver 400formed on the left of the display area DA is shown in FIG. 11.

Each of the wiring portions LS includes a gate-off voltage line SL1 fortransmitting the gate-off voltage Voff, first and second clock signallines SL2 and SL3 for transmitting the first and second clock signalsLCKV1, RCKV1, LCKV2, and RCKV2, respectively, and an initializing signalline SL4 for transmitting the initializing signal INT. The signal linesSL1 to SL4 extend substantially in the vertical direction. The gate-offvoltage line SL1, the clock signal lines SL2 and SL3, and theinitializing signal line SL4 are arranged in this order from the left,so that the initializing signal line SL4 is closest to the shiftregister 400, followed by the clock signal lines SL3 and SL2 and thegate-off voltage line SL1. The positional relationship between thegate-off voltage line SL1 and the initializing signal line SL4 may bechanged. In addition, the signal lines SL1 to SL4 have extension linesextending toward the stages ST1, ST3, ST5, and ST7 in the horizontaldirection. The extension lines of the gate-off voltage line SL1 and theinitializing signal line SL4 extend toward each of the stages ST1, ST3,ST5, and ST7. The extension lines of the first and second clock signallines SL2 and SL3 alternately extend toward the stages ST1, ST3, ST5,and ST7 at boundaries among the stages ST1, ST3, ST5, and ST7.

In the arrangement of the transistors T1 to T13 and T15 in the firststage ST1 among the stages ST1, ST3, ST5, and ST7 in the circuitportions CS, the transistor T4 to which the previous carry signalCout(j−1) is input is disposed at the upper left side of the first stageST, which is closest to the previous stage, and the transistors T1 andT15 to which the first clock signal LCKV1 is input are arranged alongthe extension line of the first clock signal line SL2 which extends inthe horizontal direction above the transistors T1 and T15. In addition,the transistors T7, T10, and T12 to which the first clock signal LCKV1is input are disposed below the transistor T15. The transistors T11 andT5 are disposed at a lower left side of the first stage ST1 and areconnected to the extension line of the second clock signal line SL3 inthe next stage so as to receive the second clock signal LCKV2. Thetransistor T6 that is connected to the initializing signal line SL4extending from the left and receives the initializing signal INT isarranged at the leftmost side. The transistors T2, T3, T8, T9, and T13to which the gate-off voltage Voff is input are disposed at the lowerside of the first stage ST1 along the extension line of the gate-offvoltage line SL1 extending in the horizontal direction.

In the third stage ST3 adjacent to the first stage ST1, the arrangementof the transistors is similar to the arrangement of the transistors inthe first stage ST1 except that the first clock signal line SL2 and thefirst clock signal LCKV1 are replaced with the second clock signal lineSL3 and the second clock signal LCKV2, respectively, and the secondclock signal line SL3 and the second clock signal LCKV2 are replacedwith the first clock signal line SL2 and the first clock signal LCKV1,respectively. Some of the circuit portions CS and the wiring portions LSare arranged in a line, and the other circuit portions CS and wiringportions LS are not aligned with the circuit portions CS and the wiringportions LS arranged in a line in the vertical direction. That is, thefirst stage ST1 is closest to the display area DA, followed by the thirdstage ST3 and the fifth stage ST5. The distance between the fifth stageST5 and the display area DA is the largest. The following stages fromthe seventh stage ST7 on are aligned with the fifth stage ST5.Therefore, the wiring portions LS in adjacent stages from the fifthstage ST5 on are arranged in a line. However, the wiring portion LSadjacent to the third stage ST3 is bent toward the display area DA andis not aligned with the wiring portion LS adjacent to the fifth stageST5, and the wiring portion LS adjacent to the first stage ST1 is benttoward the display area DA and is not aligned with the wiring portion LSadjacent to the third stage ST3. Thus, the gate driver 400 has the firstregion 400 a in which the wiring portions LS are arranged in a line andthe second region 400 b not aligned with the first region 400 a. Thefirst and third stages ST1 and ST3 and the wiring portions LS adjacentthereto form the second region 400 b, and the fifth and seventh stagesST5 and ST7 and the wiring portions LS adjacent thereto form the firstregion 400 a. Although not shown in detail in FIG. 11, as shown in FIG.4, the lower part of the gate driver 400 has the same structure as thatshown in FIG. 11.

According to one or more embodiments of the present invention, the gatedriver integrated into the display panel can be covered with the sealantat the edge portions of the sealant. Therefore, it is possible toeffectively protect the gate driver from external environments.Referring to FIG. 12, the gate driver 400 according to the exemplaryembodiment of the present invention includes the circuit portions CScomposed of the stages ST1 to STj+3 and the wiring portions LS fortransmitting various signals Voff, LCKV1, RCKV1, LCKV2, RCKV2, and INTinput to the stages ST1 to STj+3. However, only the gate driver 400formed at the left side of the display area DA is shown in FIG. 12.

Each of the wiring portions LS includes a gate-off voltage line SL1 fortransmitting the gate-off voltage Voff, first and second clock signallines SL2 and SL3 for transmitting the first and second clock signalsLCKV1, RCKV1, LCKV2, and RCKV2, respectively, and an initializing signalline SL4 for transmitting the initializing signal INT. The signal linesSL1 to SL4 extend substantially in the vertical direction. The gate-offvoltage line SL1, the clock signal lines SL2 and SL3, and theinitializing signal line SL4 are arranged in this order from the left,so that the initializing signal line SL4 is closest to the shiftregister 400, followed by the clock signal lines SL3 and SL2 and thegate-off voltage line SL1. The positional relationship between thegate-off voltage line SL1 and the initializing signal line SL4 may bechanged. In addition, the signal lines SL1 to SL4 have extension linesextending toward the stages ST1, ST3, ST5, and ST7 in the horizontaldirection. The extension lines of the gate-off voltage line SL1 and theinitializing signal line SL4 extend toward each of the stages ST1, ST3,ST5, and ST7. The extension lines of the first and second clock signallines SL2 and SL3 alternately extend toward the stages ST1, ST3, ST5,and ST7 at boundaries among the stages ST1, ST3, ST5, and ST7.

In the arrangement of transistors T1 to T13 and T15 in the first stageST1 among the stages ST1, ST3, ST5, and ST7 in the circuit portions CS,the transistor T4 to which the previous carry signal Cout(j−1) is inputis disposed at the upper left side of the first stage ST1, which isclosest to the previous stage, and the transistors T1 and T15 to whichthe first clock signal LCKV1 is input are arranged along the extensionline of the first clock signal line SL2 that extends in the horizontaldirection above the transistors T1 and T15. In addition, the transistorsT7, T10, and T12 to which the first clock signal LCKV1 is input aredisposed below the transistor T15. The transistors T11 and T5 aredisposed at a lower left side of the first stage ST1 and are connectedto the extension line of the second clock signal line SL3 in the nextstage so as to receive the second clock signal LCKV2. The transistor T6that is connected to the initializing signal line SL4 extending from theleft and receives the initializing signal INT is arranged at theleftmost side. The transistors T2, T3, T8, T9, and T13 to which thegate-off voltage Voff is input are disposed at the lower side of thefirst stage ST1 along the extension line of the gate-off voltage lineSL1 extending in the horizontal direction. In the third stage ST3adjacent to the first stage ST1, the arrangement of the transistors issimilar to the arrangement of the transistors in the first stage ST1except that the first clock signal line SL2 and the first clock signalLCKV1 are replaced with the second clock signal line SL3 and the secondclock signal LCKV2, respectively, and the second clock signal line SL3and the second clock signal LCKV2 are replaced with the first clocksignal line SL2 and the first clock signal LCKV1, respectively. Adescription of the fifth stage ST5 will be omitted.

The wiring portion LS of the first gate driver 400L connected to thedisplay area DA is connected to the wiring portion LS of the third gatedriver 400D not connected to the display area DA. The first gate driver400L is driven by the above-mentioned driving method. For example, thegate driving circuit disposed at the lowermost side may be driven first.As described above, the stage generates a self-carry signal and aself-gate signal, on the basis of the previous carry signal and the nextgate signal, in synchronization with the clock signal. At that time, thefirst stage ST1 receives the initializing signal, instead of theprevious carry signal, and the initializing signal may be supplied fromthe dummy stage. When the first stage ST1 is driven last, the self-carrysignal may be transmitted to the next stage. In this way, it is possibleto prevent an error in the gate signal output from the gate driver 400.However, in the liquid crystal display according to one or moreembodiments of the present invention, the gate driving circuit is notprovided at the edge of the sealant 310. Therefore, a gate drivingcircuit serving as the dummy stage is needed. When the wiring portion LSof the lowermost gate driving circuit, which is driven first, of thefirst gate driver 400L is connected to the wiring portion LS of a firststage STD1 of the third gate driver 400D, the circuit portion CS of thefirst gate driving circuit of the third gate driver 400D, that is, astage STD1, can be used as the dummy stage. Stages adjacent to the firststage STD1 are denoted by characters STD2 and STD3. Therefore, the thirdgate driver 400D has a function of compensating for the step differenceof the substrate 110 and also has a function of assisting the driving ofthe first and second gate drivers 400L and 400R. According to one ormore embodiments of the present invention, the gate driver integratedinto the display panel can be covered with the sealant at the edge ofthe sealant. Therefore, it is possible to effectively protect the gatedriver from external environments.

While this invention has been described in connection with what ispresently considered to be practical exemplary embodiments, it is to beunderstood that the invention is not limited to the disclosedembodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover variousmodifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit andscope of the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A display device, comprising: a substrateincluding a display area; a plurality of gate lines including a firstgate line and a second gate line, wherein each of the first gate lineand the second gate line extends substantially in a first direction andis at least partially disposed in the display area; and a first gatedriver including a plurality of stages sequentially arranged, each ofthe stages comprising transistors, the plurality of stages including afirst stage and a second stage, wherein the first stage is electricallyconnected to the first gate line, and the second stage is electricallyconnected to the second gate line, wherein the first stage and thesecond stage are adjacent to the display area in the first directionsuch that a virtual straight line overlapping the first stage andextending in the first direction passes the display area, wherein thefirst stage and the second stage are adjacent to each other in a seconddirection that is different from the first direction, and wherein thesecond stage is shifted in the first direction with respect to the firststage.
 2. The display device of claim 1, wherein a center position ofthe first stage is not aligned with a center position of the secondstage in the second direction.
 3. The display device of claim 1, whereinthe second stage includes a portion which does not overlap the firststage in the second direction and another portion which overlaps thefirst stages in the second direction.
 4. The display device of claim 1,wherein an output terminal of the second stage is not aligned with anoutput terminal of the first stage in the second direction.
 5. Thedisplay device of claim 1, wherein a gate line to which the first stageis connected and a gate line to which the second stage is connected toare adjacent to each other in the second direction.
 6. The displaydevice of claim 1, further comprising: a second gate driver opposing thefirst gate driver with the display area interposed between the firstgate driver and the second gate driver, wherein the second gate driverincludes a plurality of stages sequentially arranged, and the first gatedriver and the second gate driver are connected to the plurality of gatelines alternately.
 7. The display device of claim 6, wherein the firstgate driver is connected even-numbered gate lines of the plurality ofgate lines, and the second gate driver is connected to even-numberedgate lines of the plurality of gate lines.
 8. The display device ofclaim 1, further comprising: a second gate driver opposing the firstgate driver with the display area interposed between the first gatedriver and the second gate driver, wherein the second gate driverincludes a plurality of stages sequentially arranged, and the first gatedriver and the second gate driver are connected to the plurality of gatelines, and a stage of the first gate driver and a stage of the secondgate driver are connected to a same gate line of the plurality of gatelines.
 9. The display device of claim 1, further comprising: a pluralityof transistors disposed in the display area and connected to theplurality of gate lines, wherein the first stage and the second stageeach include a same layer as a layer of the transistor in the displayarea.
 10. The display device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of stagesincludes at least one NMOS transistor.
 11. The display device of claim1, wherein the plurality of stages includes at least one PMOStransistor.
 12. The display device of claim 1, wherein the seconddirection is substantially perpendicular to the first direction.
 13. Thedisplay device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of stages of the firstgate driver are sequentially arranged along an edge of the display area,the edge of the display area being adjacent to the first gate driver.14. The display device of claim 1, wherein the first gate driver furthercomprises a wiring portion connected to the first stage and the secondstage, and the wiring portion includes at least one bent portionadjacent to the first gate driver in the first direction.
 15. Thedisplay device of claim 14, wherein the wiring portion overlaps thedisplay area in the first direction.
 16. The display device of claim 14,wherein the at least one bent portion includes a bent portion that isaligned with a boundary between the first stage and the second stage.17. The display device of claim 16, wherein the wiring portion includesa first portion extending substantially in the second direction and asecond portion extending substantially in the first direction andconnected to the first portion at the bent portion.
 18. The displaydevice of claim 14, wherein the at least one bent portion of the wiringportion is provided in plural.
 19. The display device of claim 1,wherein the display device is a liquid crystal display.